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The urban part of Dublin and surrounding areas has been defined by various statutory instruments, mainly those referring to the Garda Síochána and Courts of the Republic of Ireland. However, since 2009, the Garda Division of the Dublin Metropolitan Area no longer overlaps, if it ever did, with the Greater Dublin Area; it is instead co-extensive with the Dublin Region.

The city and five counties were mentioned in the order creating the Dublin Transportation Office, giving functions and representations to the office in the Greater Dublin Area, although not using the term. The office was purely advisory and had no executive powers. The term was also defined in section 3 of the Dublin Transportation Authority Bill, 2008. This bill was never enacted. On 1 December 2009 the DTO was dissolved so this term, if it ever had legal significance, ceased to have relevance as far as the DTO is concerned.[1]

The Garda used the term the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) which was formerly the jurisdiction, within the eastern part of Ireland, of the Dublin Metropolitan Police, which was subsequently merged into An Garda Síochána, the national police force of Ireland. This jurisdiction covered parts of the old County Dublin (except the northern part around Swords) as well as the County Kildare town of Leixlip and the County Wicklow towns of Bray, Greystones and Enniskerry. Swords was covered by the Meath Garda Division. In this way, it differed from the usual definition of County Dublin and did not even conform to the looser definition of the Greater Dublin Area. The definition no longer applies as during 2008 the Garda Divisions were realigned along Regional and county boundaries. As of 2009, the Dublin Metropolitan Region is co-extensive with the Dublin Region.

Leixlip was moved to the County Kildare Division and became the district headquarters for the new Leixlip District [1]. Bray moved into the new County Wicklow Division and became district headquarters for the Bray District [2].

The 2003 Regional Planning Guidelines referred to the Greater Dublin Area as a planning district separated into a "metropolitan area" and a "hinterland area".[2]

The "metropolitan area" included both suburbs and commuter towns, covering the area from Swords and Malahide in Fingal, to Greystones in County Wicklow in the south, and as far west as Kilcock in County Kildare. This area differs from the Garda "metropolitan region" scope, in that it stretches approximately 20 km further west.

The "hinterland area" of the Greater Dublin Area was defined in the Regional Planning Guidelines as including a "range of towns of various sizes together with extensive areas of countryside".[2]

The population of the Dublin City, suburbs (Dublin City, Fingal, South Dublin & Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown) and Outer Greater Dublin (Meath, Kildare and Wicklow) as of Census 2016 was 1,904,806 persons.[3] This equates to 40.03% of Ireland's population. Estimates published by the Central Statistics Office suggest that the population will reach 2.1 million by 2021, and 2.4 million by 2026.[4] The figures are based on a regional breakdown of previously published national population projections and assume that current demographic trends will continue.

The CSO also uses the narrower definition which comprises Dublin City and its suburbs within the 3 local Dublin authorities. [5] The boundaries for suburbs are not legally defined, but drawn and revised by the CSO in accordance with United Nations recommendations.[6] The population of the Dublin urban area in 2016 was as follows:

^Central Statistics Office (Ireland) (26 April 2007). Census 2006 Volume 1 – Population Classified by Area: Appendices. Appendix 2, p.163: Towns (i) Towns with Legally Defined Boundaries. where urban areas have extended beyond the legally defined town boundary, the Central Statistics Office draws up new boundaries defining the suburban areas of Cities/Boroughs ... for census purposes ... in conformity with United Nations recommendations, as the continuation of a distinct population cluster outside its legally defined boundary in which no occupied dwelling is more than 200 metres distant from the nearest occupied dwelling ... The suburban boundaries were reviewed for each subsequent census. A comprehensive review was carried out as part of the processing phase of the 2006 Census.|access-date= requires |url= (help)